


My Spirit is a Roaring Sea

by AnaliseGrey



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: 4+1, Begging, Captivity, Eventual Smut, Illness, Kidnapping, Multi, Shiro (Voltron) Whump, Starvation, Torture, Whump, beatings, eventual Shalluratt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-06
Updated: 2018-07-10
Packaged: 2019-06-06 07:23:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,964
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15189731
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnaliseGrey/pseuds/AnaliseGrey
Summary: 4 times Shiro refused to beg, and one time he didn't.





	1. Galra Prison

**Author's Note:**

> I received a prompt on tumblr, from Mzh3de, who asked: "If you're still taking prompts from the bad things happen bingo, Shiro and forced to beg?"
> 
> Now, I'd already had that prompt claimed, but it got me thinking, because in the timeline for the It's Not a Problem series, Shiro refusing to beg is A Thing. Which led to me wondering if there were any instances in which Shiro would do it. I'd already touched on that he would beg for someone else, even if he wouldn't do it for him, but having done that before, my brain went in a different direction.
> 
> So this is a 4+1. If you prefer your whump gen, then feel free to read the first 4 chapters, they'll be pretty much ship-free, though some may foreshadow it. If you don't mind a little Shalluratt every now and again, well...chapter 5 will be for you :)

“ _ Jesus _ , Shiro.”

The sentries dragged Shiro into the cell and dropped him on the ground before going back out and locking the door behind them. Matt crawled forward and knelt next to where Shiro still lay on the floor, unmoving. He carefully placed a hand on Shiro’s shoulder, rolling him so he was on his back, and hissed in dismay. “Oh, Takashi.”

Shiro’s face was bruised and bloody, and Matt had a feeling there was more hidden under the prison uniform that he couldn’t immediately see. Shiro was trembling, and Matt reached down and took his hand, holding it tightly in both of his.

“Shiro, can you hear me?”

Shiro groaned and blinked, looking momentarily confused before his eyes landed on Matt.

“Hey.”

Matt winced at the sound of Shiro’s voice; it was hoarse, ragged, and he was pretty sure he knew how it had gotten that way.

“Hey yourself. You ok?”

Shiro snorted, then winced, and tried to push himself up. Matt got his arms around him and helped move Shiro over to lean against the wall. “Yeah, I’m ok. Or as ok as I can be, I guess.”

Matt sat next to him, put his arm over Shiro’s shoulders and pulled him in. The cells were kept cool, and they’d grown accustomed to sharing body heat to be more comfortable.

“What did they want? They didn’t interrogate dad or I this long, but they keep pulling you.”

“Obviously it’s my charming personality and good looks. You and Sam couldn’t hope to compare.”

Matt huffed a quiet laugh, but gently bumped his shoulder against Shiro’s. “Yeah, ok, but seriously, what are they asking you?”

Shiro’s eyes had slid shut again, and his head had dropped sideways to rest on Matt’s shoulder. “Nothing.”

Matt looked down at Shiro in surprise. “Nothing?”

Shiro shook his head. “Nope. Nothing.”

“Then why…?”

“They want me to beg.”

Matt was stunned silent for a moment, then, “They want you to-”

“Beg. But I won’t do it. They’re getting really pissed about it, actually, it’s kind of great.”

“Are you fucking  _ serious _ ?”

Shiro cracked his eyes open. “Are you mad at me?”

“ _ Yes _ , I’m mad! You let them keep hurting you, and for what? Your  _ pride _ ?”

Shiro leaned away from Matt, face pulling down in a scowl. “And what if I am? It’s the only thing they haven’t been able to take from me yet, Matt. If I give in, what do you think will happen?”

“I think they’ll stop torturing you for no fucking reason, you asshole.”

“Or they won’t.” Shiro sat up straighter; it looked like it pained him to do it, and his voice was softer, but no less serious when he continued. “They have most of the power right now, Matt. I don’t want to give in and beg, only for them to keep hurting me. I don’t want to beg them to stop when I know they’re just as likely to keep going. At least this way I keep my pride. Please don’t ask me to give that up, it’s the only power I have left.”

Matt wanted to argue that begging had no impact on anything, that it wouldn’t change his opinion of Shiro at all, but he knew it had more to do with Shiro’s opinion of himself, and Matt couldn’t change that for him. He sighed, and threw his arm over Shiro’s shoulders again, pulling him close.

“Okay, Shiro, I won’t, but, just try not to take it too far, okay?”

“Yeah. I don’t think we’ll be here much longer, anyway. I heard someone say something about an arena. We’re being sent there tomorrow.”

“Yeah, because that can only be full of soft, fluffy things. Comfy cushions, cotton candy, kittens, the works.”

Shiro smiled, and leaned into Matt’s side.

“I’m sure it’ll be fine. What’s the worst that can happen?”


	2. Yothypso, Uonia Star System

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro can't remember ever being this sick.

Shiro can’t remember ever being this sick.

He has vague memories of being ill as a child, his baachan giving him okayu, and small cups of miso when he didn’t feel well. He tries to remember how it felt, being coddled and cared for, having someone who was intent on making him feel better. He takes that feeling of comfort and wraps it around himself like a blanket, and does his best not to think about how awful he feels.

This was supposed to be a diplomatic mission; he’d been chosen since as the Black Paladin he’s considered the face of Voltron, second only to Allura in the requests made by potential coalition members of who they wanted to visit.

He’d arrived the day before yesterday, and been greeted by the Yothypsoans, and everything had been going well, until he started to become sick. The Yothypsoans had cultural expectations of health- they rarely became ill, and if they did, it was considered a horrible omen; anyone who got sick was locked away until they either recovered or died.

They considered that the way to handle sick visitors as well, as Shiro found out.

He’s currently locked in a small stone structure on the edge of the town he’d been visiting. In better circumstances it wouldn’t have been so bad. Despite the whole ‘lock them up til they die or get better’ thing, the space was relatively comfortable. There was a pallet for sleeping on, some cushions, a stock of water packets and nutrient bars, and a small sectioned-off area for the toilet. Shiro keeps trying to look on the bright side, that it could have just been a stone box with nothing in it, but he feels so terrible it’s difficult to feel overly generous about it.

He knows he must be running a high fever- he’s freezing and burning all at the same time. His muscles ache like he’s just been worked over by an angry klanmüirl, and his head spins every time he attempts to stand.

He’s trying to be rational about it. His next check in is supposed to be this afternoon, and when he inevitably misses it, his team will come for him. The Yothypsoans had said the standard wait time before checking on a person in the illness shack was three days. Either way, he still has time to kill. There’s a way to communicate to the settlement, an intercom type device near the door they’d carried him through, but it’s meant to be used if the person in the shack recovers more quickly than expected. They had made it abundantly clear to him that if he used it before they came, and he was still sick, he’d be breaking a major taboo and he could pretty much kiss their joining the coalition goodbye.

Normally he’d just say ‘fuck it’ and leave, calling the Castle to be picked up, but there’s a special kind of ore found on this planet, and it’s invaluable to the rebel cause. He can’t just walk away, he has to try. Also, he hadn’t felt this awful at the beginning, so he’d figured a few days in a shack on his own would be ok.

Except now here he is, feeling like death warmed over.

Whoops.

He knows he’s going to catch hell for this later. He can already imagine the disapproving look from Allura, but as far as he’s concerned, she has no room to talk. They’d all seen how drained she was after the Balmera, how worn-out piloting the Castle makes her after a battle. She does it for the greater good, and he isn’t prepared to do any less than that.

He shivers, and looks over to where the bedding pile is. He wants a blanket, but it’s across the room and he isn’t honestly sure he can make it that far on his own. On the plus side, if he falls flat on his face, there’s nobody to see it.

He gets up on his hands and knees and somehow makes it across the room to the bedding pile, though he’s shaking by the time he collapses onto it. He just lays there for a moment, breathing, though the breath occasionally catches in his throat and sends him into coughing fits. He feels tired, exhausted, like lifting a water packet would be too much, and he wishes, not for the first time in the last few hours, that he’d agreed to bring someone with him on this mission. He knows they’re spread thin, though- Pidge and Lance are on Olkarion helping get their defense systems up and running, Hunk and Keith are working with the Kladoxians, which left him, Allura, and Coran to handle diplomatic missions. Allura has run herself ragged, and Coran had come to him, asking if he could take this mission so she could have a day or two of rest, and how could Shiro say no? He’s seen how tired she’s been looking, and she’s like him- she’ll run herself straight into the ground if nobody stops her. Coran had offered to accompany him, but Shiro knows how busy Coran is as well, and had told him it wasn’t necessary. The Yothypsoans were peaceful, and barely rated as a threat; Shiro hadn’t been concerned. He felt kind of silly about that now.

He dozes for awhile, and feels even worse when he wakes up. Every deep breath leads to a coughing fit now, and he’s given up trying to guess how high his temperature is. He eyes the wall communicator again, and gives serious thought to calling for help, begging them to call the Castle, that they’ll send help for him, they don’t even need to come near him, but then he remembers the ore, and his resolve firms up again. He only needs to wait a little longer. They’ll come after him soon; they take missed check-ins very seriously.

He dozes again, and is startled awake by a sound. He jerks upward, hand lighting almost without his say so, but manages to shut it off again before he burns a hole through his bedding. The noise comes again from the side of the room, and he’s just getting his coughing fit under control when the door opens and Allura comes sweeping in. She stops a few steps in, and if Shiro didn’t know better he’d think she was ready for battle. She looks around, and when her eyes cach on him, her expression softens, though is quickly overcome with worry.

“Shiro, are you alright?”

“Yeah-” he breaks off again into a coughing jag, and she comes over to where he’s sitting and settles next to him, rubbing his back until he can speak again. “Never better.”

The look she gives him is thoroughly unimpressed.

“Why didn’t you call for assistance? We would have come immediately to help you.”

“I didn’t want to upset the Yothypsoans. We need the ore, and if all I have to do is sit here a few days, it doesn’t seem like such a price to pay to get it.”

Allura opens her mouth to speak, closes it, gives him a considering look.

“Shiro, no matter how helpful the ore would be, it isn’t worth your life or safety, you do know that, right?”

“Yes?”

She rolls her eyes, an expression he’s pretty sure she’s picked up from Lance, and she rubs a hand over her face in an uncharacteristic sign of weariness.

“Well, regardless, I’m here to bring you back to the Castle. When you missed check in we called down and the Yothypsoans explained what had happened. I told them in no uncertain terms that I was coming to fetch you and that if they were amenable I would return to continue diplomatic talks with them.”

“What did they say? I can stay if it will help things, it’s really not so bad-”

The look Allura turns on Shiro makes him shrink back slightly.

“I am taking you back to the Castle. Coran will care for you, and  _ you will let him _ , is that understood?”

Shiro swallows, barely holding back a cough. “Yes, Princess.”

“Good. I’m glad we understand one another.” She stands, smoothes out the front of her gown, and holds a hand out to him. Shiro reaches up to take it, and when she pulls him up, he wobbles, but with her assistance stays standing.

“The pod is just outside, you won’t have to go far.”

He takes a last glance around the small building, and while he still doesn’t think it was so bad, other than the being sick part, he’s glad to be leaving.


	3. Narlak 4, Plexia Quadrant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Admit it! You are a spy sent to overthrow the crown!”

“Admit it! You are a spy sent to overthrow the crown!”

The Narla interrogator backhanded Shiro across the face, almost knocking him off the chair he’d been sat on. Shiro righted himself, and worked his jaw around. Bruised, but still intact- awesome. He took a breath, searching for inner calm, and looked the interrogator in the eyes, trying to exude earnestness.

“I am a paladin of Voltron. I’m not here as a spy, we’re not trying to overthrow anyone but the Galra. I’ve been perfectly up front about that. I haven’t lied to you.”

The Narla growled, its antennae twitching fitfully. “Our informant tells us otherwise. And we trust them much more than we trust you, outsider.”

“They’re lying to you. I am _not a spy_.”

“That’s just what a spy would say.” The Narla punched Shiro in the stomach, hard, and Shiro wheezed, curling forward. A swift follow-up punch to his face knocked him over, sending him tumbling to the ground. His arms were cuffed behind him, and without a way to catch himself, he landed painfully on his shoulder. The Narla were far more paranoid than any of them had realized; or maybe it was just the crowned ruler. It was difficult to tell, the paladins hadn’t had the chance to meet many of the Narla before things went to shit. Shiro took comfort in the fact that Lance had run when he’d the chance. Otherwise it would be both of them in here. He had no idea how far Lance had gotten, but he was holding tight to the hope that he’d gotten away.

A sharp kick to the ribs dragged him back to the present, and he thought he felt something give, which wasn’t great. He gasped painfully for breath when the interrogator grabbed him by the scruff of his suit and hauled him back up into the chair; Shiro bit down a groan as his ribs shifted.

The guard just looked at him for a moment, then sniffed. “You have been found guilty of espionage. The price for that crime is death.”

Shiro’s eyes widened. “ _ What _ ? That’s  _ insane _ ! You have no proof, I haven’t done anything-”

The Narla closed a large hand around Shiro’s throat and squeezed, cutting off Shiro’s air and stalling his words.

“I have all the proof I need to find you guilty,” the Narla snarled. “And if I say you are guilty, then you are.” His hand squeezed tighter, and Shiro couldn’t help starting to struggle, his body craving the air it desperately needed.

With one last squeeze, the guard let go, and Shiro painfully dragged in lungful after lungful of air, breathing as deeply as he could with his injured ribs.

“You may, of course, beg for clemency.”  
  
“Are you- fucking- kidding me?” Shiro gasped out.

“We are not entirely without mercy. If you beg for your life we may grant it and send you to the mines instead of sending you to your execution.”

Shiro’s brain stuttered to a halt. They’d seen the mines when they were first scouting the planet; they looked horrific, chained prisoners toiling away, carrying heavy baskets of stone out into the burning sun, then back into the caves. They’d all assumed it was the Galra’s doing, but now that didn’t appear to be the case. He didn’t want to die, but like hell he’d beg for mercy from this...this...overgrown  _ rumblax _ . He’d take his chances, thanks.

“I’m not begging you for anything.”

“As you wish.”

The guard grabbed Shiro’s arm and pulled, dragging him out of the seat and towards the door. Shiro scrambled to get his legs under himself, but didn’t manage before the guard was dragging him bodily down the hallway. His ribs screamed at the rough treatment, the edges of his vision going white, but he knew he couldn’t pass out; not yet. If he passed out now he’d miss any chance to escape, and he’d be doomed.

He was dragged to a doorway and out into the blazing sun. They were heading towards a square, and he vaguely remembered it from the flyover on the way here; there had been some kind of scaffolding, and he realized with dawning horror that the guard hadn’t been bluffing. He was being dragged to his execution.

He tried digging his feet in to slow their forward movement but to no avail; his feet slid over the stones of the courtyard, unable get any purchase.

They were a few steps from the stairs up to the scaffold when an ear-splitting roar blasted out nearby. The guard jumped, dropping Shiro onto the ground. Shiro let out a pained huff of air as he landed on the stone walkway, but still couldn’t help smiling. He glanced up and yeah, there was the blue lion coming in over the low rooftops. It landed, fitting easily in the courtyard, which led Shiro to believe that when it took the scaffolding out with its tail, it was probably on purpose. He found he  _ really  _ didn’t care. A moment later, Lance’s voice echoed over the square, projected by the Lion.

“Back away from the paladin, nice and slow. Ok, not that slow. You know what, fast is fine. Get the hell out.”

The guard turned and ran, and in another moment Blue had lowered her head down, and Lance scrambled out and ran over to Shiro.

“Are you ok? I got back here as fast as I could.”

“Yeah-” Shiro winced as Lance helped him upright and worked to get the cuffs off. “I think I’ve got a busted rib or two, but otherwise ok.”  
  
“Just some broken ribs, no problem, he says.” Lance muttered to himself. “Just a tick, and-yes! Got ‘em.” The cuffs released and Shiro sighed in relief, bringing his arms around front.

“C’mon, Shiro, let’s get out of here before they come back. We should get Coran to look you over.”   
“Yeah, probably.”

Shiro followed Lance up into the Blue lion, crisis averted for another day.


	4. Droxian Flagship, unknown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro is stubborn.  
> He know he is, and he considers it one of his better qualities, even if not everyone sees it that way. His stubbornness has helped him survive a lot, _endure_ a lot, more than he’d thought he could, and he isn’t about to stop being stubborn now.  
>  But _god_ he’s so hungry.

Shiro is stubborn.

He know he is, and he considers it one of his better qualities, even if not everyone sees it that way. His stubbornness has helped him survive a lot,  _ endure  _ a lot, more than he’d thought he could, and he isn’t about to stop being stubborn now.

But  _ god  _ he’s so hungry.

His stomach isn’t even properly rumbling anymore; it’s just cramping angrily. He curls up tighter, breathing through it. He can survive this. He’s done it before, he’ll do it again. He’s studied human biology, he remembers the survival courses from the Garrison. Those and personal experience tell him that even though he might feel like he’s going to shrivel up and die, he can still go another few days without food if he has to. The lack of water is harder, but for the moment, he’s okay.

He keeps his eyes closed and turns onto his other side, the jingle of the chains attached to his ankles and wrists irritating him. He only lets himself open his eyes once he’s facing the wall again. He can survive this, but it’ll be much easier if he doesn’t have to see the plate of food and tall glass of water sitting just out of reach on the far side of his cell.

He can still kind of smell it, even though he’s trying to breathe through his mouth, but he’s firmly ignoring that. He won’t give in. He  _ won’t _ .

There’s a quiet rustle of fabric, and Shiro shudders. 

“Hello, darling.”

The Droxian queen is standing outside his cell. She fancies herself a collector of rare and unique creatures and beings, and had been delighted to find herself at a party where the Champion was in attendance. He’d woken up a couple of days ago with the sort of headache that told him he’d been drugged, chained to the wall in this cell.

“Are you ready to give in yet?”

“Fuck off.”

“Now darling, you know that’s rude, and hardly the way to speak to your queen.”

Shiro doesn’t bother to dignify that with a response.

“You cannot hold out forever. Eventually your instincts will kick in. I know your type, Champion; you are a survivor. You have not lasted this long by making stupid decisions. I know you will come to realize the truth.”

“And what is that?” Shiro grinds out.

He can hear the smile in her voice. “That you belong to me, darling. This is merely your first lesson in that truth. I will happily feed and water you. All you need do is ask.”

Shiro bites his tongue. She exudes sweetness and light, but he remembers the shock the chains had delivered the last time he’d unloaded some of his less-classy vocabulary at her. The lack of food and water is bad enough; he doesn’t want to fight the effects of electrocution at the same time.

“See? You can learn to behave, just as I knew you could. Perhaps it will take more time, but you’ll come to see things my way.” He hears the cell door swing open and he tenses, but she merely walks over to ruffle a hand through his hair. He tries not to shiver at the light feel of her claws on his scalp. “Or you will perish, but I don’t think it will come to that.”

She swishes back out, closing the door behind her, and Shiro lets himself relax again. He can do this. The others are probably already looking for him, and it’s only a matter of time before they storm the ship and free him. He just has to hold out a little longer.

‘A little longer’ turns out to be another day and a half.

Every so often the queen’s servants come in and hold him down while they pour just enough water into him to keep him alive, but other than that he hasn’t been given anything. They switch the plates of food out every few hours, making sure to replace them with ever more fragrant selections, and he hates to admit it, but he’s becoming worried the queen might be right; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.

His hands are clenched in shaking fists, and he’s curled as close to the wall as he can reasonably get. His stomach and head both ache with hunger, and his lips have started cracking; he’s very pointedly trying to ignore the gentle sound of running water they’ve started playing over a speaker in his cell.

He won’t break, not like this. He’s come too far to give in now.

He’s getting close to passing out again, though. He cushions his head on his arms, trying to think happy thoughts so if he dreams maybe it will help- being back on the Castle ship, in his own bed. Being able to get up and move around whenever he feels like it, getting to run, to train hard; moving without the sound of chains accompanying it. He’s careful not to let his mind wander to thoughts of food.

He wakes from a dream of Allura’s mice doing a circus act to the sound of quickly approaching footsteps and the cell door slamming open to bang against the other bars. Before he can think to move, there are hands on him tipped in claws, and for a split second he flashes to thoughts of larger purple hands and careless bruising force before remembering that he’s in a different place, with a different dangerous clawed person. There’s a rustle of skirts as she hauls him up onto his feet and gets an arm around his throat, pulling him up and back until he’s leaning mostly against her chest, his feet almost lifted off the floor. He hadn’t realized how tall she is- or how strong for that matter- but she’s holding him easily, and doesn’t seem overly concerned about his attempts to grab at the arm around his throat, though part of that might be that he’s weak from hunger. He doesn’t know what’s happening, why she’s suddenly doing this-

Oh. Okay, that’s why.

Another set of footsteps, ones he recognizes.

Allura is coming down the hallway, and it’s like watching an approaching storm front. She’s smaller than the queen, but that in no way conceals the sense of menace and fury she’s giving off. Shiro’s incredibly glad he’s on Allura’s side.

She comes to stand in the doorway to the cell, her expression cool, collected, and aimed over Shiro’s shoulder.

“You will release him.” It isn’t a question, but a statement of fact.

The hands on him flex minutely.

“And if I will not?”

“I will raze your ship into its component parts and you along with it.”

Shiro’s eyes widen.  _ Wow _ .

“And if I do release him to you- am I guaranteed safe passage away from here?”

“Yes. But you will release all of your captives to our care.”

The queen sputters in rage behind him, and he can only imagine the expression on her face.

“How  _ dare  _ you, you Altean upstart. I should lock you up along with him, you’d be a perfect addition to my collection.”

Allura holds up a finger. “One more chance. Release him and your other captives to me.”

Her eye scales are starting to glow, noticeable even in the brighter light of his cell.

Shiro’s eyes get bigger, and he can’t help the quiet, “Oh shit.” that gets past his lips.

The queen has come to the same conclusion, and though he can feel the ire coming off her, she releases him to drop back down to the floor. He lands hard on his hands and knees before collapsing the rest of the way down. The queen steps aside, pulling something from her skirts.

“Here is the key to his bindings. I will leave you to it while I go see to the release of the rest of my collection.” The words are grudging, hostile, but Allura doesn’t press the issue. There’s the receding sound of rustling fabric, and suddenly Allura is rushing to his side.

“Shiro!”

She drops down to her knees next to him, hands fluttering before coming to rest gently on the sides of his face, thumbs skimming lightly over his cheekbones. She bends over, pressing her forehead to his.

“I’m so glad you’re okay, I thought-”

He brings his hands up to grasp at her wrists, and squeezes gently. The chains rattle quietly and he realizes his hands are shaking. “It’s ok, Allura, I survived, I’m alright.”

She pulls back, brows drawing down into a frown. “You don’t sound alright. What did she do-” Allura’s head comes back up, looking towards the door, eyes flashing, and Shiro squeezes at her wrists again, calling her attention back to him. “Just thirsty. Can you get me loose so we can get out of here, please?”

“Oh, yes, of course.” She looks a little sheepish as she takes the device the queen had handed her and waves it over the cuffs around his wrists, then his ankles, and he sighs in relief as they fall to the floor with a clatter.

“Thanks.”

“Of course.” She sits back and helps him up to sitting. He closes his eyes briefly, trying to pull himself together enough to stand; he isn’t sure how long he can stay on his feet, or if he’ll manage it at all. Allura stands, and offers a hand to him. When he takes it, she pulls him up off the floor like he weighs nothing, and it occurs to him that from her point of view, that’s likely the case.

She steadies him with hands on his arms; as they turn to go, her eyes find the plate and cup of water on the floor nearby, untouched. He sees it the moment the situation clicks for her; her jaw tightens, and she visibly takes a moment to settle herself.

“I let her off too easily.”

“Probably, yeah. But we can’t worry about that now. We have to go help get the other prisoners out.”

Allura turns to look incredulously at him. “I will call the others to come help, if they are not already doing so. You, on the other hand, are coming with me, and we are returning to the Castle. You are in no shape to help anyone other than yourself right now, and I’m not entirely sure you’re up to even that.”

He wants to argue. He wants to pull himself up and go help collect the other prisoners, guide them to the pods that will transport them to the Castle until they can be sent home or relocated.

But he knows she’s right, however much it aggravates him. He managed to hold out against the queen, but he has no reason to fight against his princess.

“Okay.”

She blinks at him in surprise. “Okay?” 

“Yeah.”

Allura’s smile brightens her whole face; if she’d been a storm front before, this was the sun coming out after the rain. She ducks under his shoulder and slings an arm around his waist, taking most of his weight.

“Ok then. Let’s go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a reminder, though I'll put a reminder at the beginning of the next chapter as well-
> 
> If shipping isn't your deal, you'll want to stop with this chapter.  
> If you don't mind a little Shalluratt now and then, feel free to keep reading!


	5. Allura’s Bedroom, Castle of Lions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro gets what he deserves.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a reminder, this chapter is HELLA shippy, like, explicitly so.  
> If Shalluratt isn't your jam, that's fine, just back away, no harm done. No hate will be tolerated, though.
> 
> Also, here there be sexual content, so...ya know, be warned and such.

Shiro is dozing.

There are very few places he’d rather be than where he is right this moment- on Allura’s bed, with his head pillowed on her lap as she reads on her tablet with one hand and cards fingers soothingly through his hair with the other; he thinks he might actually be melting into the bed a little.

There’s a tap at the door before it opens, and Matt comes in, already peeling his outer layers off. 

“If that quiznacking modulator dies one more time, it’s not my fault, and I refuse to fix it again.”

Allura hums in absent agreement and Shiro doesn’t bother to respond at all. Matt‘s been having an ongoing battle with the slynath modulator for the past few quintents, and his complaints are routine by now. He strips down to the sleeveless undershirt he’s taken to wearing under the layers of his rebel uniform, and after taking his boots off, crawls up onto the bed, stopping to drop a kiss to the top of Shiro’s head before moving up to lean against Allura’s other side.

“So, plans for tonight?”

Allura sets her tablet down. “I believe it’s Shiro’s turn to decide.”

Shiro hums, turning his head to nuzzle Allura’s thigh. “Whatever you want is fine.”

Allura and Matt share a look.

“You sure you don’t have any kind of opinion?” Matt asks. “ _ Any _ inclinations at all?”

“Nope.” Shiro stretches lazily before settling back down. “I’m good with whatever you guys come up with.”

Allura smiles, and if Shiro’s eyes were open, he might be concerned at the edge it carries. “Alright, Shiro. If you say so.” She reaches down, grabs him under the arms and lifts, ignoring his startled yelp as she drags him effortlessly up the bed so he’s also tucked against her.

“It is  _ really  _ hot when you do that.” Matt breathes, mouth still hanging slightly open..

Allura reaches up and threads her fingers through Shiro’s hair, using it to hold him still as she leans in to kiss him. By the time she pulls back, Shiro is panting for breath, his lips kiss-bruised and his eyes a little glassy.

She grins, smug, and turns to look over her shoulder at Matt. “As we discussed?”

“Yeah,” he coughs, clearing his throat. “Yes, sounds good.”

“Excellent.”

The next few minutes are taken up with getting undressed, though they keep getting distracted by kissing. Shiro can’t say that he really minds, since both Matt and Allura are being especially affectionate toward him; one of them is almost always touching him, kissing him, petting him. It’s very nice, and by the time they’re all naked and back on the bed, Shiro’s skin is humming pleasantly with arousal.

Allura settles herself against the headboard, propped up by a small mountain of pillows, her legs spread out in front of her. She focuses and grows so she’s barely taller than Shiro, then pats the space on front of her on the bed, smiling sweetly. “Come sit here, Shiro.”

He crawls up the bed and turns before settling, leaning back. Her arms snake around his front and tug him back until he’s flush against her; Shiro hums happily and lets his eyes slide shut, enjoying the feel of skin-to-skin contact and the light touches where her hands have started to lazily pet his chest, skimming over his nipples. He gets distracted enough that he only realizes Matt has advanced on him when Matt puts his hands on Shiro’s knees, pushing them apart and to the side, and crawling between them.

Matt inches forward, palms sliding up Shiro’s legs and Shiro can’t help the delighted shiver that goes through him when Matt starts to rub gentle circles with his thumbs on the delicate skin of his inner thighs. Allura leans forward and nips at his shoulder, getting his attention.

“We know you said whatever we wanted was alright. However it is still your night to choose, so if you decide at any point you want something, let us know.”

“Yeah, okay.”

Allura pulls her arms back, and moves her hands to run them over Shiro’s shoulders, down his arms to grasp at his wrists. His breath catches, heartbeat picking up, but in a good way. After a few disastrous attempts at using restraints, they’d found other options that worked for them. She pulls his arms behind him and helps him fold them behind his back, then wraps her arms around him, effectively pinning his arms between his back and her stomach. He’ll still be able to get free if he really tries, but this is close enough to give the illusion of restraint. Plus he’s not one to argue against having Allura’s arms around him.

It’s only then he really registers the look on Matt’s face, and realizes he might be in trouble. He recognizes that look- it’s the same look of determination Matt gets when he’s about to head into battle or tackle a really big coding issue, though he isn’t used to seeing that sort of laser focus directed at his dick.

He’s known Matt for years, had been friends with him for awhile before they were chosen for Kerberos, and they’ve been together, like this, for a few phoebs now. He doesn’t think Matt’s ever looked at him quite like this before; like he’s a snack and Matt’s going to devour him whole.

Allura hooks her chin over Shiro’s shoulder and practically purrs in his ear.

“Shall we begin?”

Shiro swallows, his throat making a dry click, but he nods.

Matt and Allura then proceed to drive Shiro out of his goddamn mind.

He doesn’t know how much time has passed; time isn’t really important right now. What  _ is  _ important is how he feels like he’s on fire from the inside out, and if he doesn’t get to come very soon he may actually combust.

Every time he starts to get close, Matt and Allura back off, and now he’s almost sobbing with need, hitting his head back against Allura’s shoulder in frustration. Allura just rubs a hand soothingly over his stomach with one hand while the other remains across his chest to hold him still.

Matt adds more lube to his fingers while he waits for Shiro to calm down again. “You know, if there’s something you want you can just ask us.”

Shiro’s brain is somewhere on the bed; he’s pretty sure it’s slid out one of his ears, so it takes him a moment to realize Matt is talking to him.

“Wh- _ ah _ !” Matt chooses that moment to slide two fingers back into Shiro’s ass, crooking them just-so to scrape against his prostate.

Shiro loses a minute to sensation, twisting on Matt’s fingers and against the hold Allura has on him. She’d moved her legs at some point to hook over his thighs, holding them out to the sides and leaving him open and vulnerable for whatever mischief Matt intends to get up to. Every time Shiro tries to speak, Matt crooks his fingers, and suddenly, he can’t stand it anymore.   


“Please!”

Both Allura and Matt pause, and  _ no,  _ dammit, that isn’t what he wants. 

“What was that?”

Shiro looks pleadingly at Matt, whining as he struggles against Allura’s arms, trying to buck his hips  down, to get Matt to move again,  _ anything _ .

Allura kisses his shoulder, nuzzling against the sweaty skin of his neck. “Use your words, Takashi. Tell us what you want.”

Shiro groans. He hadn’t realized until pretty recently what hearing Allura purr his name would do to him, and now he dreads her ever saying it in public; he doesn’t want to have to explain why hearing his own name makes him blush.

Matt smirks, pressing his fingers in again, and Shiro writhes, words starting to tumble out of his mouth without much input from his brain.

“ _Please_ , fuck, I need, need you to _touch me_ - god _damnit_ , Matt- please- I want to come, please let me come, please _please_ ** _please_** -” He wails in dismay when Matt pulls his fingers out, and Allura is petting him again, kissing up his neck to murmur in his ear as he trembles against her, her breath a warm puff against his skin.

“Takashi, you’ve done so well, you’re so good for us, how do you want to come? Tell us and we’ll make it happen right now. Just tell us what you want.”

He almost says he doesn’t care, but he has just enough brain cells left to know how badly that could go. He struggles for a moment to form a coherent sentence, and finally, he thinks he can do it. He opens his mouth, and Matt crooks his fingers again, eliciting a shout from him.

“ _ Matt _ .” Allura says disapprovingly, but Shiro can hear the hint of a smile in her voice. “Let the poor man speak. He’s trying so hard.”

Matt grins. “Oh fine, ruin all my fun why don’t you.”

“Mmhmm.” Allura leans in to kiss Shiro’s neck. “Try again Takashi. What do you want?”

He strains against her hold, unable to help it. “Please, his- his mouth and fingers, and-” he whimpers as she pets his chest again. “Hands- your hands, on my chest, please, Allura-” Her name comes out almost a sob, and she squeezes him in a hug for a moment before unwinding one of her arms so she’ll have a hand free.   


“I think that’s all perfectly reasonable. Matt?”

Matt’s grin morphs into a smirk, and Shiro has a split second of worry. “On it.”

Shiro almost chokes on his tongue when Matt dives forward and swallows him down, working his hand under Shiro to get two fingers back into him. Shiro’s brain whites out for a moment from sheer sensation, and if he thought he was going to combust before, it’s nothing compared to how he feels now. Pleasure burns through him, and when Allura starts to rub her thumb over one of his nipples, it’s just another point of ignition.

His orgasm is quickly building, and he’d normally be embarrassed at the sounds he’s making, but he feels so good that he really doesn’t care. It’s not long before he’s right on the edge, he’s right there, so close, but he needs, he still needs-

Alluras lips catch at his earlobe, tugging gently before she whispers, “Come for us, Shiro.”, and that’s all he needs to go sailing over the edge. He thinks he screams, but the sudden release after all the build up leaves him in a soft, floaty place, and he really can’t be bothered one way or another. Matt gently slips his fingers out, and pulls off of Shiro carefully, turning to place a kiss on Shiro’s thigh before sitting up and wiping at his mouth with his forearm, looking very pleased with himself.

Allura pushes Shiro forward slightly with one hand so she can help him unfold his arms and sets them along his sides before letting him lean back against her again. He’s utterly boneless, not sure he could move if his life depended on it; but he also knows that Matt and Allura won’t let anything happen to him, and that feeling of warm safety is just as good as the orgasm he just had.

Fingers again, carding through his hair, and Shiro tilts his head up to see Allura looking fondly down at him. He smiles dopily up at her. “Hey.”

She snorts delicately, and pets his hair again. “Hello. How do you feel?”

He sighs and snuggles back against her. “Great.” He has a thought, and his eyes widen a moment before glancing between Allura and down where Matt’s pillowed his head on Shiro’s leg. “But what about you two, you didn’t- you haven’t-”

“Shh.” She catches at the sides of his face and tilts it back again to kiss his forehead. “We’re fine for now. Why don’t you take a moment before we do anything else.”

Shiro hums softly in agreement, closing his eyes and nestling closer to Allura’s chest, reaching down to find Matt’s head and give it a clumsy pat.

“Sounds great.”

**Author's Note:**

> Title taken from a [visual poem of the same name](https://zenpencils.com/comic/spirit/), written by Zen Pencils.


End file.
